What is Brain Fitness?

Key Elements of Brain Fitness

BrainPro products increase "brain fitness" by strengthening the foundational skills that support overall learning success. Our scientists understand how kids learn and we integrate that knowledge into the patented technology behind every one of our brain fitness products, creating an optimal environment to "spark" learning.

Developing children's cognitive skills allows them to develop the basic language and reading skills they need to succeed academically:

Sequencing

Placing the detail of information in the correct order such as days of the week and the alphabet. In the context of reading, sequencing is the ability to determine the order of letters within words or words within sentences. Understanding the correct sequence helps in the processing and comprehension of the message and information.

Processing Rate

In the world of neuroscience, processing is the term used to refer to how the brain actually handles information. Processing rate is related to speed, how fast one can handle information, but also accuracy. To be able to follow the directions of a teacher, or read a book, a child has to be able to process many details in very quickly.

Attention

We learn and perform better at everything we do if we are focused and can pay careful attention to details. In school, teachers often evaluate students by how well they attend in class. Teachers may use the term "good listening skills" to refer to students who attend and follow class directions well. To improve attentional skills, neuroscientists who developed the BrainPro programs have specific exercises that tax attention as well as speed by presenting sounds very quickly, forcing the child to maintain their attention to fleeting stimuli. Further, almost all of the exercises require a child to press a "ready" button, to initiate each activity in the exercise. By pressing the ready button, this actually increases the presence of a neurochemical that enhances the child's ability to pay attention.

Recall & memory

The importance of memory in learning is clear. We tend to consider people with good memories as very "smart." And now, new research has shown that just by exercising a kind of memory, called working memory, we can make our brains "smarter". BrainPro works on recall and memory through two kinds of exercises. First, all children practice following directions in Space Commander and Stellar Stories. But, second, working memory, that builds immediate recall, is built through the exercises of Whalien Match and Lunar Tunes, concentration-like exercises that require recall of small detailed differences in words.

Knowledge

Of course, the goal of all brain building exercises is to allow children to learn better and "know" more. BrainPro achieves this by increasing learning capacity through improvements in sequencing, processing rate, attention and recall skills. But in addition, BrainPro has specific exercises that stress "knowledge" of vocabulary, Robo Dog and Star Pics, as well as language conventions through Ele-Bot and Stellar Stories.